Trump’s Private Meetings with Pharmaceutical Companies

President Donald Trump, it had all the makings of a potentially hostile meeting. It might be surprising to know Just weeks before, Trump had sent drug stock prices plummeting after accusing the companies of “getting away with murder” by charging too much for medicines.

But the Trump who greeted chief executives of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N), Novartis (NOVN.S), Merck (MRK.N), Eli Lilly (LLY.N), Celgene (CELG.O) and Amgen (AMGN.O) on Jan. 31 was a surprisingly genial host who even gave them a personal tour of the Oval Office, according to several participants in the breakfast. “There is no question that it was better than it could have been or we thought it could be,” said one industry insider familiar with the meeting. Although, Trump did not repeat his public attacks on the industry. Instead, he focused on “outdated” regulations that drive costs up for drug makers, according to participants interviewed by Reuters. The CEOs left with Trump’s word that he would streamline regulations and reform the high U.S. corporate tax rate.